We Made It! ... San Jaun Islands or Bust

 Our ultimate goal is to get to a point where we can live the free (not carefree as we will probably work harder but it will be for us) lifestyle of being full time live aboard cruisers on a sailing vessel with all of the trials and adventures that it brings, good and bad ... but we have worked so very hard to get to this stepping stone that it feels like quite an accomplishment in itself just to get here for now. We have had to dig ourselves out of a tremendous hole of debt and stress just to be able to by an old boat. Then spend two years fixing it up, learning to sail, buying safety equipment all while continuing to work ourselves out of the hole of what we thought was the "American Dream". Now we own the boat, our truck, and all other possessions other than a small car payment and are working on "OUR DREAM" ... to be debt free and living free! So anyway that brings me to the San Juans which has been our intended first step to dippin' a toe in the cruiser lifestyle since the beginning. We have our boat, our dinghy, everything to be self reliant and are heading to the Islands for 17 days ... no time schedule nowhere we have to be, just drop the hook when it feels right and leave when were ready ... woohoo!

  The San Juan Islands are a sunken mountain range full of incredible beauty, history, adventure and a little danger if your not careful. The currents and reefs require some careful navigation as we learned on our first trip up a few weeks ago which we have had time to evaluate and learn from. We are now ready to take this wonderful step on our voyage to "Freedom in Simplicity".


Capt. Carey

Wow! is that awesome or what ... although I think I'd rather be in the sailboat!

Dinghys ... besides Heather!

 Our last trip to the San Juans was fantastic, but one drawback was having to be lashed to docks that are sometimes hard to get anywhere close to as they are very busy. We had to be able to get the pooches to shore for potty breaks so we ended up staying in marinas or public docks which does take a lot of the serenity and adventure out of the picture. It was still a blast mind you, shopping and wandering around the little island towns but we felt a little restricted to where we could go on any given day and had to follow a schedule of some sort.
 So began the research into what you would think is a fairly simple decision but we wanted something that would fit our needs now but would not be wasted money and be an investment that would also be what we need when we go cruising. When you will be living on a 35 foot boat in the middle of nowhere and think of all the supplies that have to be carried onboard for safety as well as convenience there are so many factors to consider ... weight, storage, ease of set up and on and on as this is basically your car that will be used for transportation to shore but also to transport provisions, fuel and water from shore in what can be some extremely remote areas.

  We love the hard sailing dinghys and may end up carrying both an inflatable and a hard sailing dinghy as well as an inflatable kayak from Advanced Elements at some point but opted for a solid wood floor panel inflatable because it is stable, durable and simple although a little heavier and harder to assemble than some of the options. We also chose to go with a quality make from Achilles in the Hypalon material which stands up much better to the brutal tropical sun than a cheaper PVC inflatable.

  OK, well I am going dingy thinking about dinghys so I think I will have some coffee with Heather ... my favorite dingy.

Captain Out

4th of July

We spent the morning going to the farmers market that just happens to be right outside the Boat Haven. Then we went to the parade that just happened to be, again, right outside the Boat Haven. the rest of the day was spent wandering around the marina, and the area outside. We found a store just up the street, called 'The Market'. I want to work there if I get the opportunity, so I can get a discount. They have the coolest stuff in that store. The captain spent most of the afternoon re-organizing Simplicity. I did some laundry, and stuff. We went for a putt out in Fidalgo Bay, just outside Cap Sante. The fireworks were being set off over Fidalgo Bay. We had the best seat in the house, our own cockpit.Tomorrow sailing. The Captain out-did himself with the dinner he made. mmmmmm. bunkmate

Sucia Islands

When we reached the Sucia Islands, we were coming up from the SW, so we came up almost to Fossil Bay. As we neared the islands we chatted about how beautiful the island are. They are a whole different look than the rest of the San Juan Islands. You can tell that they really aren't part of the sunken Mountain range, that makes up the San Juan Islands. How they got there I don't know. I'm just glad they are there, to enjoy the beautiful mounds, with trees & low beaches connecting them. There are not very many mooring balls inside Fossil Bay, but they are lined up both sides, with a small dinghy dock. Everywhere you look there is a picturesque view. I was in such awe I forgot to take any pictures. I did get some beautiful shots though. This is definitely dinghy country, I'll tell you what. Snoring Bay isn't a very big bay, which is located between Echo Bay and Fossil Bay, on the southern tip of Sucia Island. Inside Echo Bay are the islands, Justice, North and South Finger Islands. On the NE Islands are Cluster and Ewing, with Shallow Bay on the west side. No matter which island you see, it's just absolute beauty. We decided we need to spend more time here on our next vacation in August, with our dinghy. Hopefully there will be an open mooring ball. If not, that's what we have an anchor for. We set out for Matia Island, and down the East side of Orcas Island, through the Straight of Georgia. We decide to go on the East side of Sinclair Island. We ended our trip around the East side of Guemes Island, and into our home port, Cap Sante Boat Haven in Anacortes. What a beautiful trip home.  bunkmate

The Spray

As we came through the President Channel headed north, we could see the Islands. They were beautiful. More beautiful than I imagined. The waves were coming SE, so we were fighting the swells. It is totally different when they are hitting you right on your side. They rock and roll you pretty good. We were headed NE, past Pt. Doughty, I was at the helm, while the Captain was down below goofing off. I was always on whale watching mode. I had seen a couple of seals, a few porpoises. I was so excited when I spotted a 'spray'! It was at least 7 feet high. The water was pretty choppy, but it was definitely a whale spray. It wasn't an Orca because I didn't see a dorsal fin. So it had to be either the grey whale that had been spotted hanging around the San Juan Islands, or the Humpback whale, that also been hanging out up there. Nothing else could have made the 'spray', 'spout', that was that high. I hollered at the Captain to take the helm, and took the top step in the companion way, to get an unobstructed view. I never took my eyes off of the water, for probably a half an hour or more. Like I said, the water was pretty choppy, but even the waves couldn't make a spray 7 feet high. I just didn't see it again.   bunkmate

Deer Harbor

Deer Harbor was the most relaxed marina, by far. Not much in the way of a puppy park, but we made it through. They had a little strip by the road, little. We got our slip assignment, our slip #10. After that we decided to go for a sail and see if we could see any whales. We headed out towards Spring Passage. We seen a couple of seals, and a handful of porpoises. Still no whales. We have seen tons of jellyfish, they are pretty cool, I'm not sure what they were called, but they looked like a four leaf clover-ish. Some had more purple clovers and some were completely  clear. Dang, there's this centipede looking snake thing, that has "40 million" legs!!! We saw one while we were on our way out of Prevost Harbor, one in home port was actually being swallowed whole by a loonish looking bird. When they swim, they oooz this white stuff, EEEEEWWW!!! We decided to head towards home port, via Sucia Islands.  bunkmate

Friday Harbor

As we left Stuart Island we started to make plans to head to Friday Harbor, get a shower, a couple of breakaway pins, and probably a new VHF. The VHF we have, the only thing we have ever heard was static, not squelch, static. As we passed Johns island, we started to see the porpoises again. It's so cool to see them in the wild. We spent the next couple of nights in slip #H35. We had soo much fun wandering around and watching people. The couple in the boat next to us, were from Montana. They absolutely fell in love with Simplicity. And when we decide to sell her they want first dibs. They have a 23 footer right now. And didn't realize they made bigger trailerables. The Captain was telling them of all the work he has done. It was kinda funny, cause they launched at Washington Park too. Friday Harbor had so many cool little shops. Too bad we don't have tons of money to spend. We chatted about where we wanted to head next, and we decided to head for Deer Harbor, which is on the SW corner on Orcas Island. Bot what a great sail, hahaha, the water was like glass, and again, not a stitch of wind. We weren't the only sailboat motoring on the water. I guess that's why we have an iron genoa, haha.  bunkmate

The Deed

We had always 'planned' on getting a couple of spare breakaway pins,,, But we never did. So the Captain found a couple of bolts that 'will do', in his tool box. they were steel, not plastic. As we were wandering the island, and such, we always kept an eye on the tide, and the beaches at low, to high tides, always searching for a good 'beaching' spot, to replace the breakaway pin. We were also trying to find the most opportune time to do the 'deed'.  We chatted about a bunch of scenarios, and decided that the best time to do 'the deed' would be the morning high tide. The sun would be warming the air, and the water would be cold anytime anyway, soo,,. We hooked to a mooring ball that night and watched the beach that night. And bright and early the Captain was ready. We just needed the sun to come over the hill. Captain Carey was making plans on what he was going to do, how long it should take, and what tools to take with him. He decided a wrench and screwdriver were the tools he needed, so he tied them together, one on each end of a line, and tied them to his belt. I readied some dry towels and clothes, so when he was done, it wouldn't take too much time to warm himself up.We decided that the pilings for the dock was the place to get things done. I fended Simplicity off the pilings, and the Captain readied himself, and Plunk in he goes. Roxi was all excited, she wanted to go swim with dad, I thought she was going to jump in. He was in the water about 15 seconds, when he came up the first time, he had the pin, and had gotten the rudder in place. He readied the bolt, and Kerplunk, he went in again. This time he was down about 20 seconds. As soon as his feet hit the cockpit, he was taking off his shorts, he went below and dried in a hurry, and had his dry clothes on. Before you knew it he was firing up the iron genoa, and with a push off the pilings we were under way. It was kinda funny how he/we planned the pin operation so well, and we hadn't decided where we were going when we left. bunkmate

The Rudder Incident

As cut across the San Juan Channel, towards Friday Harbor, Captain Carey decided to go below and rustle us up some grub. There wasn't a stitch of wind. So we were toodling along, when the Captain said 'Why don't you kick it up a notch?' so I powered up the motor, and then CLUNK, CLACK, CLACK, CLUNK!!!. I dropped the motor in neutral, the Captain jumped up on deck, and was hollering 'what did we hit?' I quickly looked out over the motor, and sure enough the breakaway pin did just that, broke away. The rudder was flipped back and was hitting the prop. The side that had the bolt on it, appeared to still be intact, and that's the side we kept looking at.The other side had broke off, so the bolt was stuck inside. So the Captain used the boat hook and shoved the rudder back into place, and we decided we could still make it if we toodled along, and stayed in low rpm's.  And it worked great like that, but we decided not to go into Friday Harbor, because it is the busiest marina. They have ferries, boats, and float planes landing and taking off all the time, along with Whale Watcher boats too. So off to Stuart Island. As we passed the Wasp Islands. As we neared Spieden Island we started to see some porpoises, they were playing in the rips. Some of the rips were quite cool actually, but if you were to fall in, we would never see you again,even with a pfd, they were gnarly. We chugged along past Jones Island, and between Spieden & Flat Top, to Stuart Island, and decided it would be best if we went into Provost Bay. There was just enough room at the dock for us to squeeze in. Red Dog and Roxi were happy to see land again. We had a great time wandering around the island. A family that lives on the island has a "honor system' store/treasure chest. We bought (send a check later, no cash) a t-shirt, that has a pirate on it, a real nice fleece vest, and a couple of hand painted post cards. bunkmate

First leg

We have gotten back from our first vacation in the San Juan Islands. It was the best vacation ever!! Cap Sante Boat Haven is in Anacortes, Washington. Simplicity is in slip #78. That is where our adventure begins and ends. Our first leg of the journey headed up the Guemes Channel, we were headed up to Thatcher Pass to Fisherman Bay. It's a very shallow, and narrow stretch into Fisherman Bay. It was the full moon, so we had extremely high and low tides. So we decided to take showers and head out early in the a.m. As we were checking the tide, we noticed that where the slip that they had assigned us, we were going to be sitting on the keel if we didn't get out soon. So we readied the boat, and set out. A guy on the dock 'helped' us out of our slip, and pointed us in the only direction that had the rocks that we were trying to avoid. Aaarrg!! Our rudder hit the rock pretty hard. We stopped the boat alongside the outer dock and checked the rudder with the boat hook, and all appeared to be ship shape. So off we go to the shallow entrance to the Fisherman Bay Marina, calling it close and we need to head out before the tide gets any lower. We were in the center of the channel, going slow and listening to the bottom get shallower and deeper, by inches, not feet, on the depth sounder. We got around the corner, and could see the last buoy. There was a power boat coming towards us on the last corner of the channel. The boat squeezed us out of the edge, and CLUNK!! The rudder hit AGAIN!! This time we didn't have a dock to climb onto and check it out, but the Captain poked it with the boat hook again, and again she appeared to be in tact. So off we go,,, headed to the deep water. After we hit deep water the Captain checked the rudder again, and decided we made it through. bunkmate